"You're either on the bus or you're under it..." (Please read the two articles below.)

For those of you in Montana who are interested in the economic future of our state: Disturbing legislation that deserve your attention: "Montana's Economic Development Funding is at Risk. Your Support is Requested and Vital to Montana's Future" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html especially when you read these articles: "Ranking the States for the New Economy. Montana Ranks 42nd. Colorado down to #9 due to inadequate higher-education funding. Utah 'economic dynamism' No. 1. Washington State in Top 5. Where Does Your State Rank?" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html

Does Education Drive New Firm Survival?High school dropouts are such a drain on state and regional economies, in fact, that many states are raising the legal age from 16 to 18 before a student can excuse himself from school permanently. For example, several governors used their State of the State Addresses this year to call for the change.

Ideas for Fostering Entrepreneurship"... Identify leaders who will be involved at the state level because education within the state legislature, with a governor, and with governors' administrations is extremely important. It's not that the efforts need to be government led, but the government can act as a catalyst and can be a major funding source. ...

Cities afraid of death by congestionPolitical and business leaders in metro areas increasingly view traffic congestion as hurting their ability to compete with other regions for new businesses and young professionals.

Montana Tech Regional Science and Engineering Fair Results“This was the lowest attendance we have seen at the high school fair in over a decade. Although it was a bit disappointing not to have more students, the quality of work by those competing was phenomenal. We awarded 57 prizes valued at over $10,000 and every student was well deserving of their accolades!” reported Annette Kankelborg, the Co-Director of the fair.

Robotic tournament at MSU March 2 and 3 FIRST Lego League (FLL) is a robotics competition for 9- to 14-year-old students in which teams of 10 or fewer kids build and program a Lego robot capable of accomplishing a set of missions in a limited amount of time.

Education

Hard recovery for failed US schoolsCalifornia is a harbinger of the magnified problems that public schools around the country will face as the last phase of the reform timeline outlined by No Child Left Behind (NCLB) kicks in this year.

Tell the truth: A $12 million anti-meth lesson in Idaho"It reaches a target audience better than more traditional forms of drug awareness could," said John Hanian, a spokesman for Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter. "They are actual kids talking about their lives after meth. We want to replicate that here because we have got lots of these stories in our state."

The mob mentality of venture capitalIt's about connections and introductions, he explained. In other words, the venture capitalists make sure you don't fall in with the wrong crowd; just use their lawyers, their accountants, and their bankers, and you'll do fine.

The Chemistry of Great PartnershipsIf you were to seek a partner to help you lead a business, what would you look for? How would you set up the relationship for success, and what are the pitfalls you'd be sure to avoid?

The University of Utah in the top 25 for its tech transfer success."Licensing revenues earned by the University of Utah support further research and a variety of commercialization support programs, including the university's Technology Commercialization Grants Program, our seed research grants program, and provide matching funding required by various federal grants,"

Build Your Own Backyard Fuel CellStephen Friend has the first hand-built fuel cell-powered house in the US. No, not another hopeful boil-your-own-yogurt demo for an impractical technology, but a real, sustainable achievement that makes its own hydrogen in a cedar shed out back.